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Monday, September 18, 2017

If you have an older car and your temperature gauge is not working, it’s very easy to determine what’s causing the issue. There are three main parts to the system: the gauge itself, the wire and connector, and the temperature sending unit.

First, pop off the connector from the temperature sender (located on the engine block) and ground the connector. Stick it onto something in the engine bay that’s metal. I found a stud on my carburetor that worked quite nicely. Get in your car on turn on your auxiliary power (don’t start the engine). You should see the needle on your temperature gauge creep up all the way to hot. If it does, you know that the wire/connector and gauge are good, and your problem is the sender.

If it does not, check to make sure you have a good ground, and try again. If it still doesn’t work, you know the issue is either the wire/connector or gauge.

If that’s the case, check your wire and connector. Does the connector look okay? Is the metal inside corroded? Trace the wire for any frays or splits. It can get kind of nasty at this point because you may have to open up your wiring harness to trace the problem.

If the wire and connector look okay, it may be the gauge. That would be your most expensive and time consuming part to replace, but at least you know where the problem is.

So there you have it: a quick tech tip for you. To see this all in action, check out the video at the end of this article where I try these steps on my 1971 Ford Torino 500 that’s featured in Torino Time!

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